View as PDF

View this email on our site
Subscribe to this newsletter

Please consider distributing this newsletter to others.

We wish our readers a Happy New Year 2026!

Don't Let the Bed Bugs Bite

Shaku Nair, Shujuan Li, Dawn H. Gouge 
Department of Entomology, University of Arizona

The holidays are fun and happy times for most people, and we hope you enjoyed yours. However, increased travel and gatherings during holidays also create perfect conditions for bed bugs to spread. They can hitchhike in luggage and second-hand gifts and decorations, move between winter clothes piled up together, and set up residence in couches and mattresses used to accommodate friends and family. Thus, the discovery of a bed bug infestation before, during or after the holidays can quickly turn happy memories into nightmares. Over this holiday season, multiple people battled bed bugs and reached out to us for help. This newsletter will provide a quick overview of these pesky pests and share some useful resources that will help in their identification and management.

Figure 1. Bed bug adults and nymphs on a nickel. Photo: Whitney Cranshaw.

Bed bugs are important blood feeding insect pests of public health concern, due to severe physical, mental, social and economic effects on affected people. All stages of bed bugs except the eggs feed on blood. Humans are their preferred hosts, although they will occasionally feed on some pet animals in rare instances, usually if humans are no longer around. Neither dogs nor cats have been reported to cause bed bug relocation between homes. They pierce the host’s skin using their needle-like mouthparts (proboscis) and draw out blood. Most people do not sense bed bugs biting them, and bed bugs rarely awaken a sleeping person. The term for bed bug bites is ‘cimicosis’, which can manifest in varying levels of severity, from no visible symptoms, small red bumps or welts or prominent spreading blister-like swellings. Repeated bites tend to generate more severe reactions, and heavy infestations can cause anemia in children and the elderly. Secondary infections can occur due to the scratching of bites. Bed bugs can cause a number of health effects, including skin rashes, psychological effects, and allergic symptoms. They can also carry several pathogens in and on their body, but they have not proven to be competent vectors of disease-causing pathogens under normal living conditions. 

Identification: Adult bed bugs are small, oval or elongated oval reddish-brown insects about 1/4 of an inch in length (Figure 1). They move by crawling or running but cannot jump or fly because they are wingless. Unfed bed bugs are extremely flat and almost circular in outline, but after feeding the abdomen becomes elongated and rounded. Newborn bed bugs (nymphs) are minute, almost clear or cream colored if unfed and bright red just after a blood meal, often with a dark spot towards the rear end of their abdomen indicating digested blood from a previous meal. Larger nymphs are reddish brown in color, and smaller than the adults. The eggs are elongated, white in color and can be laid in any location in a home where adult bed bugs hide

Several other insects and arthropods, often found in the same environments can be mistaken for bed bugs, causing unnecessary panic. Accurate identification is important.

Test your bed bug identification skills.  Which of the following are bed bugs?
(Look for the answers elsewhere in this issue).

How to know if you have bed bugs?

There are a number of warning signs may indicate a bed bug infestation.

• Finding itchy bites, welts or bumps on your skin. Bites are more common on skin that is exposed while you sleep. But bites alone can’t indicate a bed bug infestation due to similar symptoms can be caused by many bugs, and itchy reactions can take a long time to develop, or never develop at all
• Clusters of dark brown or black spots in folds or seams of bedding and along mattress edges (Figure 2).
• Blood spots on bed sheets and pillowcases.
• Insects crawling on bedding, or clusters of insects along mattress creases and folds.
• Dead insects, or shed skins along baseboards, cracks and crevices in bed frames or other spots close to resting areas.
• Confirmed identification through a professional or Cooperative Extension.

Figure 2. Signs of a bed bug infestation (adults, nymphs, eggs and fecal spots). 
Photo: Dawn H. Gouge.

Where do bed bugs come from?

Bed bugs can arrive in a home in several different ways. The most common are:

• Travel - Residents staying in hotels, college dormitories, boarding schools, summer camps or other homes.
• Sharing a common wall or corridor with a neighbor in multi-unit residences or apartments.
• Second-hand, rented or shared furniture and clothing.

Behavior: Bed bugs usually spend the daytime hidden in cracks and crevices of beds, bedding, furniture, clothing and other articles in or near beds, as well as borders of walls, under carpets, inside electrical outlets, and almost any dark protected space. Feeding normally occurs at night, but occasional daytime feeding occurs. Bed bugs do not fly or jump, but can run rapidly over a surface, especially in response to a disturbance. They do not burrow into the skin of their host.  

Adult bed bugs mate by a process called ‘traumatic insemination’, where the male pierces the female’s abdomen and injects sperm, which travels through the female’s body to the ovaries where the eggs are fertilized.  Nymphs pass through five stages before reaching adulthood.  All nymphal stages require full blood meals to pass on to the next stage, and adults require full blood meals to become sexually mature.  All stages, including eggs, nymphs in various stages of development, their molted skins, and adults can be found together in groups, along with their dark-colored fecal material. Dark fecal spots along mattress seams and blood stains on bed linen are often the first signs of an infestation. High populations of bed bugs can cause a typical musty-sweet ‘buggy’ or fruity odor in a room. 

How to prevent bed bug infestations

• Avoid used mattresses/box springs, bedroom furniture, or stuffed furniture. If this is unavoidable, carefully inspect and clean items before moving them in.
• Avoid moving bedding in and out of other homes. If bedding is taken to a childcare facility, school, home, hotel/motel or shelter, wash and dry all items thoroughly as soon as you return home.
• Do not place coats, backpacks or purses on beds, recliners, or sofas when visiting friends or family. Items placed on a hard surface are less likely to acquire hitchhiking bed bugs.
• Try to avoid sitting on upholstered furniture when visiting friends or family, if you know they have bed bugs or may have bed bugs. If this is unavoidable, wash and dry your clothes as soon as you return home. Do not forget to inspect shoes and bags.
• When traveling, check hotel beds for bed bugs and fecal spots before settling into the room, following the same methods used to check your home. Place your luggage and personal items in the bathroom while inspecting your room (Figure 3).

Figure 3. When traveling, place your luggage in the bathroom and inspect your room before you settle in.
Photo: Shaku Nair.

What to do if you suspect you have a bed bug infestation in your home

Monitoring:

• Visually inspect beds, chairs and sofas regularly for clusters of insects. Pay special attention to seams and crevices where bed bugs hide. Early introductions can be eliminated quickly and cheaply.
• Place commercially available bed bug traps/interceptors under bed and sofa legs. Traps/ interceptors should be checked every 1-2 weeks (Figure 4).
• Use light colored bed linens, these make it easier to detect bed bugs and their signs. 

Figure 4. Interceptor traps are a cheap and effective way to monitor for bed bugs.
Photo: Dawn H. Gouge.

Sanitation:

• Launder bed sheets and clothing regularly. Washing alone does not kill bed bugs, but clothes dryers are very effective at killing all stages of the insects (Figure 5).

Figure 5. Clothes dryers are very effective at killing bed bugs. 
Photo: Dawn H. Gouge.

• Many non-washable items can be heated in a clothes dryer or drycleaned safely. Items that cannot be exposed to heat can be placed in a household freezer for 4 days to kill bed bugs.
• Vacuum mattresses, box springs, bed frames, headboards, furniture, floor areas, and floor-to-wall skirting board areas. Double-bag vacuum contents and dispose of bags in outdoor garbage receptacles. Store vacuums in garages or external storage areas.
• Vacuuming removes bed bugs and eggs and helps detect new infestations. Do not spend money on aerosol spray pesticides and bug bombs, save up and get a vacuum cleaner.
• If disposing of heavily infested items, wrap the items in plastic or furniture bags before moving them outside. Destroy or mark items so people are less likely to take and re-use them.
• Steam clean mattresses and furniture.

Habitat modification, exclusion:

• Reduce clutter around bed and sofa areas.
• Seal cracks and crevices where bed bugs can hide.
• Install bed bug encasements on mattress and box springs. Encasements are covers that are designed to fit around mattress and box springs securely, preventing bed bugs from moving or biting through the covering. Most beds do not need to be discarded.
• Pull the bed away from the wall and place bed bug interceptor traps (or glass jars with talcum powder in) under bed and furniture legs.
• Remove box spring valance and ensure that bedding does not touch the floor.
• Store suitcases and luggage in a garage or outdoor storage cupboard. If this is not possible, wrap them in large plastic bags.
• When returning from a trip, unpack suitcases outside the home. Bag the clothing to avoid spreading bed bugs around while transferring clothes into the washing machine. After washing, dry items in a clothes dryer completely before putting them away. Line drying will not kill bed bugs.

Chemical control:

Many over-the-counter products do not work well to control bed bugs. Retail insecticides will often kill the bed bugs you can see but fail to eradicate an infestation. Contacting a licensed and reputable pest management company experienced in bed bug eradication is advisable.

Bed bug resources

What You Need to Know about Bed Bugs

A concise trifold that provides information about bed bugs, their identification, detection and good household practices to keep bed bugs away from a home. https://extension.arizona.edu/publication/what-you-need-know-about-bed-bugs.

Bed Bugs: What Home Care Providers and Welfare Workers Need to Know

If your job involves visiting homes, or interacting physically with people, this trifold publication provides information on bed bugs and precautions to be taken to minimize the risk of accidently picking up an unwanted hitchhiker. https://extension.arizona.edu/publication/bed-bugs-what-home-care-providers-and-welfare-workers-need-know.

Bed Bug Control: What Landlords and Tenants in Multi-Family Housing Need to Know in Arizona

This publication covers legislation (SB 1306) that assigns specific responsibilities to landlords and tenants in multi- family housing, pertaining to bed bugs. https://extension.arizona.edu/publication/ded-bug-control-what-landlords-and-tenants-multi-family-housing-need-know-arizona.

Practical Methods of Controlling Bed Bugs at Home

For residents battling bed bug infestations at home, this publication answers several frequently asked questions about preventing and managing bed bugs. https://extension.arizona.edu/publication/practical-methods-controlling-bed-bugs-home.

Are You Flu-ready?

As of early January 2026, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports elevated and increasing influenza-like illness (ILI) activity nationwide, with Influenza A (H3N2) viruses being dominant, leading to increased hospitalizations, especially among the very young and elderly, and continuing to expect higher activity for several more weeks, though it's too early to determine overall season severity. 

Historically, flu activity tends to peak in January and February. The CDC reported that outpatient visits for flu-like illnesses hit 8.2% for the week ending December 27, 2025, the highest level since data collection began in 1997, signaling a severe flu season with millions of illnesses, 120,000 hospitalizations, and 5,000 deaths as of early January 2026, with activity still high across most states and potentially continuing for weeks despite slight recent dips, driven partly by the H3N2 virus. 

Key CDC Resources:

• FluView: Provides detailed weekly reports, maps, and interactive tools showing ILI activity by state and region.
• Respiratory Viruses Data Channel: Offers integrated data on Flu, COVID-19, and RSV. 

To reduce risk, the CDC continues to recommend annual influenza vaccination for all individuals aged six months and older who have not yet been vaccinated this season. More than 130 million doses of flu vaccine have already been distributed nationwide.

The CDC recommends the following precautions:

• Vaccination: It is not too late to get a flu vaccine. Annual vaccination remains recommended for everyone six months and older.
• Antivirals: Prescription antiviral medications are available and are most effective when started early, especially for high-risk individuals.
• General Precautions: Frequent handwashing, covering coughs and sneezes, and avoiding close contact with sick individuals remain effective at limiting spread.

The CDC also advises monitoring for flu symptoms, including sudden fever, cough, sore throat, and body aches. Antiviral medications can help reduce severity when started promptly.

What the Heck Was This?
(From our December issue)

      

Answer: Lady beetle larva.

Looks like our Master Pest Detectives are not back from holiday break!
No one got that!

---

What the Heck is This?

  Identify this plant.

If you know the answer, email Dawn at dhgouge@arizona.edu. You will not win anything if you are correct, but you will be listed as a “Master Pest Detective” in the next newsletter issue.

---